Within Reach
by skygirl55
Summary: Castle continued to follow his partner with tension in his gut. He just knew something was off about this place. Caskett S3 AU. 3 Parts.
1. Chapter 1

**Within Reach**

Castle continued to follow his partner with tension in his gut. He just _knew_ something was off about this place. Caskett S3 AU. 3 Parts

* * *

**One**

Castle flinched when he heard a peculiar crunching sound beneath his feet. He quickly tilted his phone, which he was using as a flashlight, down towards the floor and saw that he'd trodden on a broken pen cap. Though the object could not have been more innocuous, Castle continued to follow his partner with tension in his gut. He just _knew_ something was off about this place.

When his partner, Detective Kate Beckett, had invited him along to join her in exploring the abandoned warehouse, he was all too excited to ride along. There had been several sightings of their murder suspect in the area, and as they drove Castle mused aloud whether or not the warehouse might be some sort of lair for the man who had killed two that they knew about and burgled a suspected dozen homes. Plus, he loved exploring creepy warehouses—who didn't?

Upon arrival, Castle's mood immediately began to shift. That late in the day, the last remnants of sun shone directly on the upper floors of the warehouse, but from the way it was shadowed by neighboring buildings, it could have easily been the set of a horror movie. While in some circumstances that might have fueled him on and certainly would have caused him to make many jokes, Castle felt no amusement that day. His gut told him something was amiss with the building, but when he voiced such concerns aloud, his partner brushed him off and said, "It'll be fine, Castle; c'mon."

Once inside the building, his fears were not at all assuaged. If anything, the maze-like interior of the building with empty offices, debris-covered floors, and doors hanging off their hinges only amplified his concern. Something was truly amiss, and he needed to be on high alert—for both their sakes.

As they rounded yet another creepy corner with an ominous lack of lighting, Castle said, "Ah, Beckett, are you sure about this place? I mean, I really don't think Kavanaugh is here."

She stopped walking and shot him a rather incredulous look. "Oh really? You don't think any one of these offices could be his _lair_," she said, emphasizing the word he used earlier. When he gazed at her sheepishly, she lowered her hands to her sides and asked him quite seriously, "What is going on with you today?"

"I just have a really, really bad feeling about this place—don't you?"

She shrugged. "Doesn't seem any worse than other places we've been in lately, but if you feel that bad about it, you can wait in the car."

Despite the nervous flutter of his heart, his voice was firm. "No, I cannot."

"I'm a big girl, Castle; I can handle this sweep alone."

"It's not that. I just…I'd feel like I'm doing a disservice to my past self if I wait in the car now that you're finally not forcing me to stay there."

She cracked a small smile and suggested, "C'mon; let's find a stairwell so we can check the next floor."

He followed her silently despite the unsettled feeling in his gut. Though his comment about not waiting in the car had not been entirely untrue, more than that, he felt it was his duty as her partner—and as someone who cared for her—not to leave her alone when his gut was screaming that something was wrong. If something were to happen and he wasn't there with her… he would _never_ forgive himself.

Around the next corner they saw a sign for the stairwell and followed it. On the second floor, the building had less walls and doors and was more open, but Castle still did not feel any better about their surroundings. In fact, he felt worse, due to the audible creaks and cracks coming from the building. He swept his eyes back and forth across the open area despite the fact that very little could be seen in the dark. A moment later, he heard what he thought was a whooshing sound and gasped, "What was that?"

"I don't know; something is running maybe."

"But the power's out," he reminded her, as one of the first things they had done was check the light switches on the first floor.

"Maybe there's a generator."

"I don't know if that makes sense…" He sighed as Beckett pushed open yet another door, which brought them into a cavernous area where the might once have been machinery or something else relating to manufacturing. That room was not as dark as the hallways had been, so Castle could see the outline of the opposite wall and the third-floor balconies above. The light seemed to be filtering in from overhead, so he wasn't sure if there was a skylight or simply a hole in the roof. What he could clearly see was puffs and swirls dancing through the light partially obstructing it in some places. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end when a sickening thought popped into his mind.

"Beckett—up there. Is that smoke?"

"It's probably just dust."

"Wha—no." He grunted as he disagreed. He knew what dust looked like when it filtered through a beam of light. This was different; more ominous. "It's smoke—I swear its smoke. I did not get nominated the head safety parent of Alexis's primary school two years running just—"

"Wait." She stopped in her tracks and held out her arm to stop him from walking around her. She lifted her head and he could hear her making sniffing noises. When she turned back to him she said, "I think it is smoke; I can smell it."

Resisting the urge for an "I told you so," Castle spun on his heel and walked quickly towards the direction from which they came. He gripped the door handle and tugged on it, but it didn't budge. Confused by this apparent trickery, he grabbed harder, twisted dramatically and tugged but there was nothing. His heart rate accelerating immediately, he began frantically clawing at the door handle saying, "We're locked in! We're trapped!"

"I'm sure there's another stairway on the other side of the building," Beckett said in an alarmingly calm tone that only succeeded in fueling his panic.

"You mean the side with the fire?!"

She ignored this comment and walked confidently around the exterior of the room moving towards her left. The next door was several hundred feet away; it was also locked. Again, they continued, their pace a bit quicker that time, until they came to another door. She grabbed the handle and then leapt back with a yelp.

"What?! What!? Is it hot?" Castle asked frantically. She didn't respond, but the panic that was creeping into her face told him the answer. "Shit; we have to get out of here. I'm calling 911."

"No, I'll call into dispatch; it'll be faster."

While she pulled her phone out, Castle continued to search the area in hopes of finding a way to escape. Thinking the best course of action would be to start on the side of the building opposite the fire, he reached out for the sleeve of her jacket and gave it a tug so that she would follow him across the center of the open space. They had only taken about five steps when movement above them caught his eye. "Beckett…"

"Yes, this is Detective Beckett and I'd like to report-"

Beckett's call to dispatch was cut off by a piercing scream from the both of them after they were hit from behind by an unknown object. They were both flung forward onto what originally appeared to be a stable surface but ended up being a giant hole in the floor covered by scraps of plywood. Castle barely had the chance to call out, "Oh shit!" before the half-rotted wood gave way beneath them just as a fiery inferno exploded above.

Castle felt as though they were falling for miles before his body slammed into the floor below causing all the air in his lungs to evaporate while searing pain shot through his right arm. "Ah! God! Shit!" he moaned when he tried to move, and the pain intensified.

"Castle?" He heard the voice of his partner distantly at first, his ears ringing from the way his head had smacked against the floor upon landing. Her voice came quickly into better focus though and he soon felt her hands land softly on his back. "Castle? God, Castle are you okay?"

"No." He whimpered. "My shoulder…I think it's broken."

"Let me see. I'm going to roll you okay?"

"Wha—I—ah!" He yelped again when she moved his torso and lightening bolts of pain moved from his wrist, up his arm, and across his chest.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry—I'm just trying to see. Hey, can you look at me Castle?"

Despite the agony, Castle opened his eyes and blinked a few times. He saw Kate's angelic face up close and an inferno of flames high above, which was a very strange juxtaposition, but he also felt he may have been slightly delirious. He was, however, aware of the fact that her body was draped over his and didn't feel the need to complain about that.

Her fingertips skimmed his face and jaw then moved down to his chest and belly. Everything felt fine—nice, even—until she reached his right shoulder and he yelped.

"Sorry," she apologized once more. "I'm trying to be as gentle as I can but…I'm not sure if you shoulder is broken, but it's definitely dislocated."

"Feels broken." He grunted out through gritted teeth, the pain now so intense his vision was becoming spotty.

"Castle, hey, can you look at me?" She coaxed him with the gentle touch of her hand to his left cheek and he tried his best to focus on her lovely face. "This is going to be really terrible, but I think considering the fact that we are currently in a burning building, I need to try and set your shoulder."

He moaned at the prospect of that but managed one coherent though. "Call dispatch first."

She gave him a sad smile and held up her shattered phone. "Can't."

"Shit. Mine is—ah!" he yelped when he instinctively tried to move his right hand.

"Don't—try not to move. What pocket is your phone in?"

"Front right." Castle found himself momentarily disappointed that he was in too much agony to enjoy the feeling of Beckett's slender hand slipping into his pants pocket. When she held up his damaged phone, the agony returned. "Fuck—does it work?"

"I…no I don't think so."

"Shit." He cursed again, though he couldn't say he was surprised since I probably landed on that phone with half his weight—after falling a story to the ground.

"Okay, you shoulder; we have to keep moving and you can't move until I do this." She moved him so that he was flat on his back and then stood on his right side, gazing down at him. "Are you ready?"

"No," he whimpered. "How many times have you done this?"

"You don't want me to answer that now. Also, I'm very, very sorry."

"What foooaahhhwooo!" He screamed when she put her foot on his chest and sharply yanked on his arm, but then, when he felt the snap, the majority of the pain evaporated and he was able to curl up on his left side, half choking, half crying with relief.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." Beckett was on the ground beside him in an instant, her hands combing through his hair. "Did you feel it pop back?"

"Yes."

"Good, because I'd never done that before."

"Figured," he grunted, not that it mattered then; all that mattered was getting out of the burning building.

With three more deep breaths, Castle found himself with a clear enough head to rise up in his knees, and then climb to his feet, using Beckett on his left side for assistance. He curled his right arm against his chest and then gazed around the room, which was quickly filling with smoke. "Where—how do we-?"

"I think we came from that way. Just wait here and-"

"Like hell," he responded for there was no way they were separating inside that burning building, particularly since he felt as though someone had pushed or shoved something in to them to cause their initial fall.

She gave him an annoyed look. "I'm going three feet—I just want to check those doors." She jogged over, checked the three handles, and then turned back to him with a defeated expression.

"Okay, let's move," he said, starting to walk in the opposite direction, but he quickly found it difficult due to the pain in his right hip and spine. He grumbled at the fact that his body was suddenly a disaster area. When he reached the opposite wall, he tried two more doors before a third opened; it led to a stairwell. Though they had entered on what he thought was the lowest level, he could see stairs leading downwards.

Beckett stepped around him, clearing moving towards the stairs, but he reached out with his left hand and caught her arm. When she looked back, he cautioned, "What if it's just a boiler room and we get trapped?"

Heeding this concern, she nodded and began searching the immediate area for something, though he wasn't sure what until she procured the broken back of a chair. "We'll prop the door just in case." Castle agreed to this idea and closed the door gently on the prop she found before following her down the stairs into the unknown.

With both their phones broken, they had only Kate's small flashlight to guide them through the unfamiliar place. The basement was dank and was strewn with debris and, strangely, mattresses. Castle once again began to think about his lair theory, but some leftover drug paraphernalia told him that it was simply a junkie's hideout.

"There!" Kate said, pointing across the room towards an obvious source of light. The duo hurried over to find a bizarre sight.

From what Castle could best deduce, the area they stood in front of had once been a stairway leading to the ground level outside, but it had caved in, or was damaged by something, because only random chunks of concrete and brick remained. They could see outside, though, and were about twelve feet below the surface he guessed.

Castle stood beside his partner, skimming his eyes over the area, trying to find an escape route for her; it took several minutes to put the puzzle pieces together. "Okay, if you climb up on that edge there, you can step over to that brick, then that one. It might be tricky because there aren't many hand-holds, but I think you can manage. From that point, I think you're tall enough to reach and pull yourself up to the surface then just go back to the car and radio dispatch while I wait here." He concluded his explanation in a tone that made it seem as though all he was asking her to do was walk across the sidewalk.

"No, Castle; I'm not leaving you in here."

"You have to," he said matter-of-factly since it was the only escape route they found.

"No, I don't. I'm sure there's another way out that we can both use."

When she turned to walk back towards the center of the building, he once again grabbed her arm to stop her. "Kate, just go."

"No!"

His brow crinkling with frustration he snipped back, "Why are you fighting me on this?"

"Because I'm not leaving you in here!"

"You're not driving away and abandoning me—you're getting us help! Besides, I'm not going back in to the fray; I'll just stand here by this weird little hole. There's fresh air and-"

"No! Stop! I'm not going; end of discussion!" She shouted back to him before yanking her arm out of his grasp and walking back into the darkness of the basement.

Castle remained by the hole for several moments feeling utterly stunned as to what was going on. While he appreciated the fact that she did not welcome the opportunity to separate, she was being ridiculous. Yes, the climb out could be a little tricky, but he believed it manageable, and with him standing there with fresh air pouring in was as safe a place as any. When the firemen arrived, they could probably hoist him out of that area, too. She was being absurd, and he needed to convince her that his plan was the way to go.

Scurrying after her, he called, "Beckett, listen, I really think that-"

Castle's words evaporated when a thunderous explosion could be heard from above them. Instinctually, he ducked and covered his head, but the sharp movement of his right arm caused him to drop to his knees in pain. A moment later, the ceiling above them crackled and crashed, depositing flaming debris into the center of the basement.

Coughing from the dust and smoke, Castle hoisted himself to his feet with great effort and began a desperate search for his partner. Horrifying as it was, the partial collapse actually helped Castle see. While the smoke stung his eyes, the flames lit the area and he could see his partner collapsed several feet away and rushed to her side as quickly as he could. "Beckett! BECKETT!"

He dropped to his knees beside her and pulled at her shoulder with his left hand until she sat up, coughing as well. "I'm…I'm okay, I think."

He held her firm and stared at her intently. "Now will you climb out that damn hole?"

"I'm not sure if-"

"GOD!" Castle yelped when another loud crack was heard. He shielded his partners body with his own as more rubble could be heard falling against the concrete basement floor. When he lifted his head once more, it felt as though he and Beckett were in the center of a flaming circle of hell. He quickly hoisted her to her feet despite the paint caused them and rushed her through the only clear path they had. Unfortunately, it took them in the exact opposite direction of the escape route they discovered with no clear way of getting them back to that place.

"Maybe…maybe there's another way out…" Beckett said, half choking on her words. She moved to the nearest wall, then held her hand against it as she led the way around the basement. They did find a metal door, but like all the others it was locked, and might only have led to a supply closet for all they knew. They also found their way back to the stairwell, which surprisingly had not been blocked off. Unfortunately, with a giant hole in the floor of the level above, neither were sure if ascending would do them any good, but it was their only option.

When they reached the floor above and found no way out, Kate suggested going up, thinking that perhaps the top floor had some sort of fire escape they could use. Castle agree to follow, but they only made it half way up before the choking smoke made it impossible for them to continue, so they went back down to the landing between the first floor and the basement. There, there was a barred window, which Beckett tried to break using the chair back they used as a door prop. While she did manage to crack the glass, it would not prove a successful means of escaped. Choked and exhausted, she collapsed down on the ground with her back against the wall. Castle sat down beside her and placed his left hand on her knee.

"I'm sorry Castle."

He shook his head at her. "None of this is your fault."

"But you were right—this building wasn't safe. I didn't listen and-"

"No, no. Beck—" Castle paused to cough and rub at his mouth with the sleeve of his blazer. "Beckett, we tried to get out. This…this may have been a trap for all we know, but its definitely not your fault. It-"

Once again, the disintegrating building interrupted his words and the two of them cowered together in the corner of the stairway. In that reinforced space they were safe from debris, but the heat and flames grew ever-closer and the most dangerous element—the smoke—was quickly stealing oxygen from their lungs.

"Castle," she rasped out, her nose bumping against his from how they'd huddled together. "We…we don't have much fresh air left."

"Don't say that." He rasped, his voice gravely from coughing. "I'm sure someone has seen this fire; the cavalry will be here any minute."

"But if…" She tiled her head enough to meet his gaze and Castle immediately felt his face flush, though not from the heat of the flames as much as the sultry way in which she looked at him. He opened his mouth to speak, though he wasn't sure what he would say in that moment. He was only trying to distract himself from the very real possibility that they would not make it out alive.

"Beckett, I-"

The words were stolen from his lips, not by the sounds of the fire, but by Beckett's mouth crushing against his. He was too stunned to react for several seconds, but then he surged forward, cupping the underside of her jaw with his left hand. She let out a soft mewing sound and parted her lips to take him in. The tip of her tongue against his caused Castle to breathe in sharply and then immediately pull back, choking on the nearing smoke. He covered his mouth with his hand and turned his head away, so he wasn't coughing directly into her face.

"Shit, I'm…Beckett!" He gasped when he turned back to face her after his minute-long coughing spell to see that she was slumped against the wall of the stairwell, her eyes shut. "Beckett! Beck-!" Castle coughed again at he tapped his left hand against her face trying to rouse her. "No, no, no! Kate—c'mon Kate. You gotta stay with me. Stay—" He coughed again, gathering her body up so it leaned against his. The weight against his chest feeling heavier he said desperately, "Stay with me…stay…stay…"

* * *

Stepping off the elevator on the homicide floor, Castle strolled confidently down the hall with a singular purpose in mind: to see his partner for the first time since they narrowly escaped a burning warehouse with their lives. He tried to get away with nodding politely to those who he normally greeted warmly, but he should not have been surprised that in the wake of such a dramatic event, a polite nod was not enough. He was quickly met with handshakes, backslaps, and expressions of relief, all of which he appreciated, but he remained a man on a mission.

When he found Beckett's desk empty, he called out to Ryan to ask her location. Ryan said she was in the breakroom, so Castle turned and headed in that direction. He could just make out her silhouette beside the coffee maker as he looked through the breakroom window, so he paused just outside the door and took a deep breath to ready himself.

Four days had passed since they passed out together in the stairwell of a burning building only moments before help arrived. He'd come to briefly in the ambulance but did not remember any of it. The next thing he knew, he was waking up in an ER hooked up to oxygen and other monitors. He tried to pull them off and get out of bed and it took two nurses to hold him down as he called out for his partner. Only once they informed him that she had been rescued and was recovering a few beds away did he relax and given in to his body's exhaustion.

The next morning when he woke up his mother and daughter were at his side. They greeted him tearfully, expression how concerned they were for his safety. He hugged them both, promised he was fine, and then asked if they had an update on Beckett's condition. Alexis told him she had stopped by on her way out of the hospital not much before he woke up, but since he was still asleep, she did not want to wake him, and asked his daughter to pass long the message that she would speak with him later.

He was released from the hospital later that day and of course phoned Kate immediately. She didn't answer, and they then played voicemail tag a few times before he ultimately sent her a text message telling her to just come to the loft at any time—day or night—so they could talk. She responded that she was busy trying to find the person responsible for the fiery inferno in which they were trapped, and he needed to be resting. She, however, did promised that they would talk again soon. That had been the prior day and Castle was not sure what "soon" meant, but he was taking things into his own hands before their time beneath the flames just became another experience they didn't talk about.

Castle pushed open the breakroom door and sighed out, "Hey Beckett," to announce his presence

She turned, coffee mug in hand, and smiled instantly. "Hey Castle. How are you feeling? How's the shoulder?"

Castle gazed down at his right arm, now in a sling that strapped it down over his chest, and then back up to her. "'s okay. I'm finding out what a pain in the ass it is to do everything left handed."

She chuckled. "I'm sure. How long are you in that?"

"Um, hopefully only two or three weeks; we'll see what the doctor says. Then it'll be another month of restrictive movement, but the doctors said it could take up to three months to heal since I'm super old," he said in a tone that made it sound like a joke. Sadly, it was not at all; the doctor really had told him that being over forty could lengthen his recovery time.

She let out a breathy laugh and said, "Well I truly hope it doesn't take that long."

"How are you feeling?"

She nodded. "Pretty good. I've got some bruises from that fall and a bad headache still, but otherwise I'm fine."

"Glad to hear it."

She took a sip of coffee and then leaned back against the breakroom counter. "Sorry I wasn't able to check in with you in the hospital. I would have stayed longer but-"

"No, I get it. I just…I'm glad we're catching up now. Any leads on our almost murderer?

She shook her head sadly. "No. Without security cameras in the area we don't have much to go on, but we're still looking."

"Hopefully in a few days I'll be able to provide some assistance."

She gave him a soft smile. "Don't push yourself too hard, Castle."

"I won't. I, um…well, obviously I wanted to see how you were doing, but the real reason I came in is that there's something I'd like to say, and it's really something I should say in person, not over the phone."

"Oh?"

Castle glanced around to make sure none of Kate's coworkers looked like they were about to enter the breakroom and then he took a step closer, so he could keep his voice low on the off chance someone would step into the room. "Listen I, ah… I know we don't talk about things. That's what we do—things happen, we don't talk about them. It's our thing, I guess, but before this gets added to our list of things we don't talk about, I'd just like to point out something that happened just so we both acknowledge it even if just for this one second."

Nervousness flitted across Kate's face and she took half a step away from him, "Castle, listen. If this is about the-"

"It's not about the kiss," he interjected before she could say anything else. He'd given the events during the fire so much thought over the prior two days, he was certain he understood what had been going though her mind at that moment and could not say he felt much differently.

"The kiss can easily be explained away by the fact that we were about to die. That's certainly not why I kissed you back, but this isn't about the kiss. This is about you refusing to leave me behind, when it could have been a life or death choice." He took a half step towards her and watched her swallow hard. He then took in a deep breath and prepared himself to say the words he had been rehearsing, which he had done so they came out in a calm, organized manner; he thought that was the approach least likely to terrify her or cause her to put on a defensive attitude.

"The path out was clear, accessible, and the logical option. I would have been in less danger waiting for you there than any place else in that doomed building. You had to know that; you had to see that, yet you refused to leave, and I…I think that means something."

Castle had gone through it again and again. He'd even used the images on Google Maps to look at the building and try to recreate the scene in his mind. If there was a question of whether or not her trip out would be successful, he could have understood staying behind, but climbing out of that basement would have almost certainly been easy for her. Even if for some reason she tried and failed, there would have been no downside to trying, yet she had refused and the only explanation she provided was that she was not leaving him. While he appreciated her loyalty and felt similarly, had their situation been reversed he absolutely would have climbed out to get them help. Yes, it would have been terrifying, and he would have run to the car, made the call, and run right back to make sure she was safe, but he would have done it in order to save them both.

When thirty seconds passed, and she remained silent, he gave her a soft smile and said, "You don't have to say anything. Just… when you're ready, I hope you will." They had been through so much together—so very much. With each dramatic event he knew they drew closer, but he also knew she wasn't quite ready yet. He waited patiently for that time, hoping it would come sooner than later, but also knowing that pushing too hard would only result in him losing in the end.

Castle turned to walk out of the breakroom, but had barely stepped forward when he heard softly, "It does mean something."

His heart fluttering hopefully, he turned back to see her expression now wrought with emotion.

Speaking in a voice barely above a whisper, she said, "I couldn't go. I couldn't leave you behind, because if something happened. If I—if I never saw you again I would never, _ever_ forgive myself. I couldn't leave you behind." A single tear fell from her right eye as she said the final word.

Castle swooped forward in and instant and reached out to brush the tear away with his left thumb. "Hey, it's okay. It's okay." She dropped her chin, allowing her face to be cradled by his hand. Much to his surprise, she leaned into his touch and even lifted up her hand to close gently over his wrist. He brushed his thumb across the apple of her cheek for several moments before she gazed up at him, a little uncertain. He felt butterflies in his stomach and his mouth felt parched. Clearing his throat slightly, he asked, "Are we about to talk about the thing we don't talk about?"

She stared at him for a moment and then gave a small nod; his heart fluttered even more. He tried to draw her in, but she sniffed and rubbed her finger beneath her nose before leaning her back against the counter. "The thing is… things are complicated for me right now. They always seem to be complicated," she added in an almost self-loathing sort of way.

"Well, I…I know you're still with Josh so-"

"No," she informed him, "we broke up."

His heartrate quickened at this new information. "Recently?"

"Kind of. Technically, I ended it the night of the fire, but unofficially but we'd been on some sort of relationship hiatus before then. I… One of the reasons I've been distant the past few days is that I'm still trying to process everything. The fire, breaking up with Josh, things between us… I need time to heal, time to move on, time to process what all of this means but…. " She turned her body to gaze at him steadily for several moments before beginning again with a cracking voice. "I need you to know that I couldn't leave you in there because you are the most important…sorry." Her voice cracked almost to the point where it couldn't be heard, and tears began to steadily fall down her cheeks.

Castle felt his chest constrict with both the joy for the words she was saying to him, but concern, because he didn't want her to be hurting. Brushing away a few of the tears dangling off her jawline, he said, "Never apologize for being human Beckett. But if you want to continue this conversation elsewhere, we can. You can come to the loft after your shift."

She let out a small laugh and gave him a pointed look. "We both know what's going to happen if I go to your place, Castle."

Castle felt his heart flip over so quickly in his chest he almost did a little hop. Instead, he fought like hell to keep his expression straight as he said, "As a perfect gentleman I'm sure I have no idea what you're suggesting."

Of course, she saw through his act and gave him a side gaze before reaching for a paper towel to use as a tissue. "Uh huh."

Deciding that it would be best for him to take their discussion as a "win" and not acknowledge out loud the fact that she had more or less admitted to the fact that they would be having sex in the near future, he merely said, "Well, then, we'll leave it for now, but you can call me any time, you know that right?"

She bobbed her head. "Thanks Castle."

He nodded and then took a step back. "Okay. I'll go but…well, thanks. Thanks for being my partner."

She smiled with a twinkle in her eyes and said, "Always."

* * *

**A/N** \- thanks for reading!

as you may have figured out, my idea was to do a "Under Fire" type scenario with Caskett, but set mid-season 3...so kind of instead of them being trapped in a freezer.

there are 2 more parts after this. :)


	2. Chapter 2

**TWO**

With a huff of frustration, Castle pushed himself away from his desk stood and gazed down at his computer with a frown. He definitely had not made as much progress on his writing as he'd wanted to, but for once that was not due to the fact that he had distracted himself with a thousand other things. Instead, the issue was his physical limitation. With his right arm still strapped in a sling, he could only type with his left (and non-dominant) hand, which was unfathomably frustrating. He briefly tried to use dictation software, but that only helped slightly. After several hours of hunt-and-peck typing, he decided it was time to give in.

Yawning dramatically, Castle stood from his chair and tilted his head from left to right to stretch out his neck. He absentmindedly scratched a spot on his stomach and then decided it was time to wind down for the evening. He shut the lid on his laptop, pocketed his cell phone, and then walked out of the office on his way towards the kitchen.

He intended to make sure everything that could be put away in the kitchen was and that all the lights were turned off, but he was interrupted on his mission midway across the apartment when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out to see that the vibration had been notifying him of a text message from Kate that read, _You still awake?_

He responded immediately using the phones talk-to-text feature. "Yes. Need something?"He then continued on his way to the kitchen only to be interrupted by his phone vibrating again, this time due to an incoming call. He smiled at Kate's picture on his phone then tapped the green button to answer the call. "Hey Beckett; what's up?"

"Nothing I…It's silly." He could hear the groan in her voice and imagined her with a slightly embarrassed expression that was entirely adorable. "I shouldn't be calling this late."

"Please. You know I hardly ever go to bed before one." True, it was right around midnight and he was about to get ready for bed, but that didn't mean he was _in_ bed. Even if he was, he always had time for his partner.

"I, um, I fell asleep reading and I had a nightmare about us being in the fire and I...I just wanted to hear your voice."

Castle's heart clenched when he heard how sad and afraid she sounded on the other end of the line. He knew all too well the unsettling dreams that could happen after a traumatic incident like the one they had survived; he experienced them too. He was also so proud of her for reaching out to him instead of trying to put on a brave face and muddle through on her own. On top of all that the sentiments of just wanting to hear his voice lifted his soul. It had taken nearly three full years for them to get to that place, but they were well on their way there—_finally_.

"Well I'm here for you Kate, and I completely understand about the dreams; I've had a few myself."

"I know its normal after something like that but they're still...unsettling."

"Yes, they are," he said, recalling the one from two nights prior in particular when he'd woken up choking, convinced smoke filled the loft, but after turning on all the lights he realized it had all be in his mind. He'd then gone back to bed and lay awake thinking about what happened and thinking about Kate for over an hour until sleep came again. With that in mind he suggested, "If…if you want to, you can come over."

She hummed, her voice a bit sluggish. "No, no; it's late."

"I know. Don't feel obligated but if you want to, you're more than welcome. We can talk about your dream, or what happened in the fire, or…or we can just sleep."

She was silent for so long that he was just about to check his phone to see if the call had disconnected when he heard, "Are you inviting me to a sleepover, Castle?"

Her tone was surprisingly light and playful; it made him grin. "Maybe I am."

"I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

Castle nearly dropped his phone from shock. He never expected her to agree! "I—oh. Okay. Great."

As soon as Beckett ended the call, Castle dropped his phone on to the counter and walked over to the refrigerator, then to the sink, then back to the refrigerator, completely unsure of what to do with himself. Beckett was coming over—Beckett was coming over to spend the night. Good grief—all his dreams were coming true!

…And his bedroom was a disaster!

Cursing beneath his breath he hurried across the loft, then remembered his forgotten phone and dashed back to the kitchen for it. Once in his room, he turned on all the lights and began to pick up the boxers and socks he'd tossed carelessly to the floor over the prior days. When all the laundry had been picked up, he noticed the crumpled used tissues and empty drinking glass on the nightstand and mentally scolded himself for allowing his life to drift back into that of a slobby bachelor after the demise of his relationship with Gina (again).

With the nightstands clear of clutter, he moved next to the bathroom, where he set out fresh towels and a washcloth in case Kate wanted them. He also double-checked to make sure the toilet seat was clean and presentable. With all that done, he returned to the bedroom, pleased with his work until his eyes fell on the bed. _Shit!_ The bed! Rather—the sheets.

Castle looked down at the arm in the sling on his chest, and then back towards the bed with a slight cringe. He really wanted to change the sheets before Kate arrived, but could he really do that one-handed? He wasn't sure, so he considered the state of his sheets. They had been on his bed for somewhere between one and two weeks—he couldn't remember specifically—and since he generally defined the level of sheets "dirtiness" by a combination of length of time on the bed and amount of sexual activities taking place on them, they were certainly on the cleaner end of the scale (since the level of sexual activity was at a firm zero). But…No. No—he definitely had to change them; it was the polite thing to do.

Stripping the bed with one hand was easy enough and he even managed to replace the pillow cases by trapping the naked pillow against his chest with his chin and wiggling the case up from the bottom. He even thought he would have been able to handle the top sheet and the duvet, but it was just that damn fitted sheet. Castle tried every possible combination of his hand and his knees, his hand and his chest, he even at one point tried to use a sock-covered foot, but it was no use. Despite the fact that he had broken a sweat with his valiant attempt, he could not get the fitted sheet on the bed without his second hand.

Just as he was staring down at the balled-up mess of sheet trying to decide his next course of action, he heard a knock at his apartment door and cursed under his breath. He hurried out into the entry-way, took a moment to collect himself, and then opened the door.

"Hi—hi! Come in," he said with notable nerves when he ushered her into his apartment. Thankfully, her light laugh sounded a bit nervous too, which strangely made him feel better.

She carried a medium sized duffle bag over her shoulder and set it down on the ground to take off her coat, revealing a t-shirt and black leggings underneath. When she picked the bag back up again, she explained, "I, ah, I brought my stuff so I can just leave from here tomorrow morning."

"Oh—smart. Um…" He sighed and dropped his chin a little. "I'm so sorry—I wanted to change the sheets for you, but I just…I can't get the fitted sheet on with this—this thing." He gestured towards his right arm with annoyance.

Kate, on the other hand, looked far more amused than annoyed. "You want me to put the sheets on the bed, Castle?"

"I'm sorry—would you mind?"

She shook her head. "It's no problem." She walked into the bedroom, tossed her bag in the entryway of the office presumably so it would be out of the way, and set to putting the fitted sheet on the bed. Of course, with her two functioning hands she had no problem at all. Once the bottom sheet was on, Castle stepped in to help her with the other sheet and duvet. It wasn't until they were both tossing pillows back in to place that he took note of the domesticity of their action and smiled about what similar events their future might hold.

"Thanks for helping. You can, um, you can take that side of the bed," he said, gesturing towards the side furthest from them. She nodded, picked up her duffle, and walked with it over to that side of the bed. As she dropped the bag in front of the nightstand he asked, "Do you want the alarm clock?"

"No, I'll use my phone."

"Need a charger?"

"I got one."

"The plug is just...yeah…" His voice drifted off when she clearly found the outlet and no longer needed his direction. He watched as she plugged in her phone and then placed it on the nightstand before turning and pulling back the duvet cover. "Do—do you need anything else?"

She looked at him a little bit amused but assured, "No, I'm fine." She sat down on the mattress and reached back behind her to adjust the two pillows he'd placed there for her.

"I think I have some firmer pillows if you prefer but-"

"Castle," she said, her tone showing slight impatience. "Everything is fine."

"Sorry," he mumbled. He walked over, knelt on the mattress beside her, and said, "I just want you to be comfortable here." His words spoke of not just that night, but the future. He wanted her to feel comfortable in that space—to feel at home—because he knew even then she was settling into what would be her side of the bed. Soon there would be tissues, or lotion, maybe even a lip balm cluttering the nightstand and its drawers, and he couldn't wait for that time to come. He wanted her to want that too.

She gazed at him, steady and kind. "I am comfortable with you, and if I need something I'll let you know."

He smiled. "Okay." Then, he pulled back the covers to his side, slipped his legs beneath them and sat on his hip as he looked at her. "You want to tell me about your dream?"

Chewing on her bottom lip, she settled in with her legs crossed beneath the covers and her hands resting loosely in her lap. Without looking at him, she recounted the nightmare. "I was…I was walking through the dark. I think I was outside, but then suddenly I was in a building. It was still dark but echoing and then this light came in to view. I was in the basement on that building and the burning debris was crashing around me. I…I could hear your voice. I could hear you calling my name, but I couldn't see you. I was running around, trapped by the flames, and then I saw your face in the fire and I-"

"Hey." When he heard her voice grow progressively more stressed, Castle placed his hand on her arm and she looked at him with watery eyes. He smiled reassuringly and said, "We're okay, Kate; we both made it out."

"I know. I know that. It was just…it was one of the scariest things I've ever been through."

He nodded, agreeing to that sentiment. Feeling bold since she had agreed to spend the night with him with very little arm-twisting on his part, he leaned over, pressed a kiss to the side of her head and said, "Just keep telling yourself that everything is okay and I'm right here beside you."

She nodded, reached over to turn out the light beside her, and then sunk down beneath the covers. As he mirrored her actions she asked, "Did—did you say you had one too? A dream."

"Mmhm. It was pretty much the same: trapped in the basement but couldn't get to you because of the fire."

"Thanks for letting me come over, Castle."

Hearing the hint of emotion in her voice, he wished for nothing more than to comfort her. He wanted to pull her in his arms and snuggle with her, promising everything would be alright. Unfortunately, with her laying on his right side and his stupid arm still immobile, he couldn't any of those things. He shifted his body just enough to be able to reach out his left hand and brush his fingers gently against her arm.

Kate hummed out a soft, "'night Castle," that made him smile.

"Night Beckett," he returned. Then, smile still on his face, Castle shut his eyes, relaxed into his pillow, and fell asleep almost immediately.

* * *

"Mm wha's…whazat…?" Castle grumbled when he heard an unpleasant beeping sound. The bed began to shift, and he heard a hushed, "Sorry; I'll be quick."

Not sure if he was dreaming, he opened his eyes to see the blurry image of a woman sliding away from his body and getting out of bed. Not awake enough to process, he merely grunted and shut his eyes so he could fall asleep. A few minutes later, he was vaguely aware of lips pressing against his forehead and the soft words, "Thanks for last night."

Two hours later, Castle awoke again to a sunlit room and the distant hum of city traffic. He yawned, stretched his left arm overhead and then sat up in bed while lazily scratching his stubbly jaw. His gaze drifted aimlessly around the room until they landed on the spot beside him in bed. The covers were pulled up over the pillows. He never made the bed like that; he always left the pillows out. That was odd, very odd, and he—

"Beckett!" he gasped aloud.

In his pre-caffeinated state, he had nearly forgotten about his surprise midnight guest. Which meant he had not dreamed that a woman had left his bed early that morning; it was Beckett! Grin on his face, he reached for his phone to send her a message, but he typed out and deleted three different wordings before deciding he needed coffee before coming up with a friendly but not overly exuberant morning greeting.

As he swung his legs out of bed and made his way to the kitchen, he could already feel his cheeks aching from the smile on his face. Beckett had spent the night with him for the first time and it was going to be an amazing day.

* * *

**A/N** thank you so much for reading & reviewing. final part will be up Saturday!


	3. Chapter 3

**Three**

Sitting in "his" chair beside Beckett's desk, Castle was content to watch his partner finish lining pictures up on the murder board and take a moment to reflect on just how wonderful his life was. He had an incredible daughter, a sweet mother, amazing friends, and his partner. Though technically at that moment they could only apply that term to their working relationship, he knew in a very short period of time it would be applied to their personal relationship as well—and he simply could not wait.

A little more than a month had passed since their rescue from a burning warehouse and he could safely conclude in that time they had transitioned from work partners to a middle-ground state that bridged the gap between a platonic and intimate relationship. Both because of the dramatic events they faced and due to the fact that Kate had just ended a relationship, they agreed to keep things casual. They didn't want to rush and agreed to start by focusing on their friendship and building from there. As such, Castle had enjoyed every single one of their "friend dates." They shared meals, went to movies, and visited art galleries. Mostly, they talked, which was Castle's favorite part. He could have spoken with his partner for days on end and never grown tired of it.

Through their conversations, Castle was able to gain more insight into why Kate was so mysterious and why her heart was kept in a padlocked box instead of closer to an on-sleeve location. They talked through her fears and ways they could work through them together as they moved in a romantic direction. Castle knew there were still times she struggled, times he could see the uncertainty on her face, but the fact that she was willing to speak with about how she was feeling and the concerns she still had continued to prove to him that she was willing to make progress and had their relationship in the front of her mind, and he could not have asked for more than that. Of course it didn't hurt that the prior week they had finally apprehended the man responsible for trapping—and nearly killing—them in that warehouse; that was certainly a weight off of both their shoulders.

When Kate finished writing out everything they knew on the board, she turned back towards her desk and gave him a smile as she went.

"Looks good, Detective," he complimented her with an over-sized grin.

She let out a breathy laugh and said, "Yeah well it'll look better when we solve it."

"Don't worry; we will."

She hummed, made a few clicks with her computer mouse, and then turned to him with her voce lowered. "Hey so…I'm thinking ahead a bit here, but: did you want to do something Saturday night?"

As it was only Tuesday, she really was thinking ahead, but he didn't mind. In fact, as far as he was concerned, she didn't even need to ask. Other than perhaps the rare Black Pawn or charity event, or something god-awful his mother invited him to, as far as Castle was concerned, all his Saturday nights belonged to Kate Beckett. "Definitely. Did you want to come over or did you have something else in mind?"

The prior Saturday night had been spent at his place. They had wanted to order in Thai and watch something on TV, but barely fifteen minutes in the cable went out. As they waited for it to come back, they played a few friend (okay, very competitive) rounds of poker. When the cable was working again, they sat side-by-side which ultimately ended in Kate resting her head against his shoulder. When he invited her to stay and sleep, she agreed, and nothing made him happier than waking up to her gorgeous face the next morning. For that Saturday he hoped to not only repeat the same plans but improve upon them since he would finally be without his arm sling.

"Actually…" She began with a coy little smile that grew wider as she spoke. "I thought maybe…maybe I'd make us dinner at my place."

"Really?"

She arched a challenging eyebrow at him and said pointedly, "I can cook."

Castle nodded and realized his surprised tone might have accidentally implied he was surprised at the cooking part of her plan not the invitation as a whole. "I wasn't arguing to the contrary I'm just pleasantly surprised. I'd love to come. Can I bring anything?"

She dipped her gaze a moment and then speaking in a murmur she continued, "How about your toothbrush?"

Castle instantly felt his face flush. From her darkened gaze he knew immediately her suggestion was not just because she wanted them to cuddle in her bed not his. She was definitely implying more—not that he was complaining. He'd wanted to make love to her practically from the moment they met. Of course, back then his desires were based solely on physical attraction, but now he knew their night together would mean so much more.

Before he jumped to conclusion, Castle did want to clarify, so he said quietly, "You mean, because we…we'd…" He let his voice drift off with the implication.

Kate gave a small nod and then turned back to her computer. Speaking in a normal tone of voice she said, "Is there a problem with that?"

"No. Not at all. I…I look forward to that very much."

She glanced at him briefly, then smiled a little bit. "Me too. I—oh actually, maybe you could bring a bottle of wine, too? Red wine."

"You got it. I-"

"Yo Beckett—I got that security camera footage you requested."

Both partners turned to Esposito and she said, "Great; thanks." Then, after giving Castle one more quick smile, they pushed herself out of her chair and followed him to where he had the video pulled up on his computer screen. Castle took one moment to internally jump for joy over the prospect of their date—and to curse the fact that Saturday was so very far away—before joining them in order to continue the investigation.

* * *

At the appropriate designated time, Castle arrived at Beckett's apartment and took a moment to collect himself before knocking on the door. He needed to remind himself that the night was long and, as much as he wanted to, running into her apartment, throwing her over his shoulders, and walking directly back to the bedroom was probably not the best approach. Still, he knew his heart would thrum with permanent excitement until that moment arrived.

Castle knocked on the door and quickly adjusted the collar of his shirt while he waited for it to open. When it did, he and his partner shared grins. She invited him inside and he ducked through the doorway before presenting her with the bottle of red wine he knew to be one of her favorites.

"Thanks, but, uh…" Her eyes flicked up and down his torso and she gave him a sly little smile before continuing. "I thought I told you to bring your toothbrush, too."

Castle bounced on his heels, absolutely loving when she teased him. He wasted no time in slipping his hand to the inside pocket of his blazer and retrieving the slim black case that held his toothbrush and a travel-sized toothpaste. "Got that right here, Beckett."

She bit down on her bottom lip and he could feel the blood in his body surging southward. He fought the urge to groan and instead swallowed hard as she said, "Good; that's good."

She slipped past him and into the kitchen, where she placed the bottle of wine on the counter by the refrigerator. He turned, followed, and asked, "So what's for dinner? Need any help?"

"Oh, um, no. It's already in the oven, actually." She gestured towards the appliance and then leaned her back against the counter as she continued to speak. "It's pot roast. Not that fancy, I know, but it's my mom's recipe. It was one of my favorites growing up and it has a lot of good, comforting memories."

Castle knew he gazed at her with an adoration that would have bordered on nauseating to any outsiders that would enter that apartment, but he did not care one bit. The fact that she made and was sharing such a meal with him spoke volumes about how far they'd come and the direction they were going in. "Well, I can't wait to try it; I'm sure it'll be great."

She gazed at him for another few seconds before stepping forward, grasping the lapels of his blazer, and dragging him forward until his lips met hers. His hands instinctually fell to her hips and he hummed with equal parts surprise and delight. They kissed for several moments before she pulled back, flashed him a wicked grin, and then began backing out of the kitchen, her hands still on his jacket.

Catching this fairly obvious implication, Castle stammered a bit while the realization settled in. "Oh, I, um—now? We're—now?"

She quirked one eyebrow at him. "Why not now?"

"Oh no—no. I'm not _complaining_; just observing—processing."

She dropped her hands from his jacket and shrugged saying, "Well we've got over an hour until dinner's done and I…" She stepped up and looped her arms around his neck saying, "I really haven't been able to concentrate on anything else all day."

"I know the feeling," he muttered before crushing his mouth against hers once more.

They clumsily made their way back to her bedroom where she separated their lips only long enough to turn on the light. Just a foot from her bed, she slipped her hands beneath his jacket and began to slide it down his arms. Unknowingly, she did so a bit too aggressively, because Castle quickly felt a pinch in his right shoulder and yelped.

"Oh! I'm sorry—I'm sorry." She apologized quickly, stepping back with a cringe on her face.

He shook his head, pulled the jacket off, tossed it on to the end of the bed, and then rubbed his shoulder a bit. "No, it's fine—it just pinches a little bit sometimes. I'm ok."

She stepped up to him again, tentative. "You'll let me know if it hurts again?"

"Yeah."

"Okay." With that, she stepped in and kissed him again.

Castle gathered her up in his arms, skimming one hand across her back while using the other to bring up over her shoulders and fist into her hair. He then moved both hands southward until he could grab her ass and use it to draw her in even closer. She moaned against his lips as he did this and he felt all the breath evaporate from his body at the notion that she was really there, in his arms, and they were really about to be together with none of them holding back. "Mmm Kate."

"What?" she whispered in response.

He gazed down at her, his heart swelling with joy, and simply shook his head saying, "Nothing, just appreciating the moment."

"Yeah? Well how about you appreciate it from over here?" And with that, she pulled him along with her on to the bed.

* * *

Castle was comfortably dozing in Beckett's bed when a stringent beeping noise hit his ears. He groaned, hoping to ignore the noise, but unfortunately his partner responded to it and began moving out from underneath his embrace. "No…don't…" he pouted, his eyes still closed.

"That's the oven timer; I don't want to ruin dinner."

He groaned a bit pathetically when she fully removed herself from his arms. Then, as her words processed, he cracked one eye open so that he could just barely see the curve of her ass and the petite tattoo that sat on the edge of her hip. Amused and curious, he asked, "You gonna go to the kitchen wearing just an apron?"

"No," she half laughed in response.

When he pushed himself to a more upright position, he saw her pulling on her undergarments (much to his disappointment). Still, his cheeky attitude remained so he offered, "Want me to come to the kitchen in just an apron?"

That time she fully laughed and turned to face him. "Actually, I don't own an apron—but maybe I'll get one just for that."

He chuckled too and then flopped back down against the mattress, making the internal promise that he would give himself one more minute to bask in the afterglow of their extraordinary love making; then, he would get up, dress, and join her in the kitchen.

Four minutes later he finally made good on that promise and strolled into the kitchen to find her standing in front of the stove, the roast now on top of it with a meat thermometer sticking out of the top. "Ready?" he asked.

She hummed out an affirmative response, removed the thermometer, and gazed over at him. "Yes; it just needs to rest a little bit and then we'll eat. You want to set the table?"

"I'd be happy to."

He completed all the table settings then opened the wine and poured two glasses, which he also added to the table. Then, he returned to the kitchen and watched her move from the stove to the counter, then to the refrigerator and back. It was the domestic dance he never saw her perform before but watched it with as much fascination as some would watch an opera at The Met. Just as she was about to bring the main dish to the table, Kate turned and caught his eye. Laughing she said, "Stop—stop doing that."

"I'm not doing anything."

She gave him a challenging look. "You are. You're looking at me like…like you know what I look like naked and are proud of it."

A laugh escaped his lips. "But that's a true statement!"

"Castle." She groaned.

When she tried to walk past him, he snagged her waist and pulled her in. "I'm sorry, Beckett, but this is just how I look when I'm feeling the happiest I've ever been." Truly. He had many moments of joy in his life—and expected many more to come—but somehow they would all pale in comparison to holding Kate Beckett in his arms as she mewed out his name and their bodies trembled with climax together. The only thing that made him happier than that was the knowledge that they would be doing that again, and again, and again…

She placed her hands delicately on his biceps, saying, "I feel that too, even though this is also the most scared I've ever been."

"Why?"

She gave a little shrug and an embarrassed smile. "I've never been all-in like this before."

He nodded. "I know, but I'm all-in, too, and I promise you, Beckett: we're going to be great."

She smiled and rose up on her toes so she could dust her lips over his. Lowering back down to her flat-feet she said, "Yeah, Castle; I think we are."

* * *

**A/N**: Thank you all so much for reading!

Just to keep you updated - I do have one more mini fic ready that i will post sometime in mid-April, but i'm busy gearing up for my big summer ficathon story, which will begin in early May. I'm VERY excited about it and I hope you guys are too :)


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